Setting mechanism for watches.



PATENTED FEB. 18, 1908.

M. SPORLBDER. SETTING MECHANISM FOR WATCHES. APPLIOATION FILED0GT.25,1907.

1 2 a? J/a'mZWrZMz/r MICHAEL SPORLEDER, OF COLORADO CITY, COLORADO.

SETTING MECHANISM FOR WATCHES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 18, 1908.

Application filed October 25. 1907. Serial No. 399.160.

jections raised by railway o'l'licials to the use of watches soequipped.

It is, of course, recognized that the pendant set has decided advantagesover the lever set for the reason that the former, in the case ofopen-face watches, does not require the removal of the bezel to allowsetting of the hands; but even with the best arranged pendant-sets, now011 the market, there is always danger of the hands being accidentallyset by the stem being accidentally pulled or jarred out.

lVith the improvements hereinafter described, it will be seen that sucha contingency cannot arise for the reason that when the watch has beenset and the. winding square has been positioned in order to allowwinding of the watch, setting cannot pos 'si bly ensue.

ith the above and other objects as will I appear as the nature of theinvention is better understood, the same consists in the novelconstruction and combination of parts of the h and-setting mechanism forwatches, as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed. In theaccompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and inwhich like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts, Figure1 is a view in vertical section through the pendant or stem portion of awatch, showing one form of embodiment of the present invention. Figs. 2and 3 are similar views of modified forms thereof. Fig. 1 is a view inelevation, partly in section of a modified form of winding square thatmay be employed in lieu of that shown in Figs. 1 to 3. Fig. 5 is abottom plan view of the set screw shown in Figs. 1 and 3. Fig. 6 is asimilar view of the set screw, shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is a perspectivedetail view of the winding square shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates a pendant, of the usual or anypreferred construction, 2 a bow, 3 a portion of the rim of the casingwith which the pendant is assembled, 4 a crown, and 5 a hood or shieldthat is internally threaded to engage external threads on the upperportion of the endant, and between which and the end of t 1e pendant isdisposed a packing 6 of any suitable material that will exclude theentrance of moisture or dust.

Arranged within the pendant and extending about one-half the distancethrough the rim 3 is a sleeve 7, the upper end of which is externallythreaded, and is engaged by internal threads in the crown 4, whereby thesleeve and crown are held assembled. At a point adjacent to the upperend of the sleeve is arranged an external flange 8 that is designed tobear against the packing 6 that is clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Asusual, the crown is socketed to receive the hood 5, thus to impart aneat and finished appearance to the pendant.

, The sleeve is internally threaded at its upper end, for a portion ofits length, and these threads are engaged by a set screw 9 which isprovided with a reduced extension 10 that extends through the top of thecrown and is externally threaded to receive a subcrown 11, the exteriorof which is milled in the usual manner to facilitate its turning. Theset screw 9 is provided with a longitudinal bore 12 and in its underface with cross slots 13.

Disposed within the sleeve is a winding square, the lower end 14 ofwhich is quad rangular in cross section and engages a similarly shapedportion 15 of the bore of the sleeve. The intermediate portion 16 of thewinding square is cylindrical and is reduced at its upper end to providea rectangular point 17 that is designed to engage with the cross slots13. From the point to the upper terminal of the winding square, thelatter is reduced in diameter to fit with the bore 12 of the set screwand to provide a push rod 18, which, as shown in Fig. 1 projectssomewhat above the terminal of the reduced extension 10 of the setscrew. The lower end of the winding square, as usual, engages with thewinding and setting wheels, and is borne against by the set spring, andas these parts form no part of the present invention, detailedillustration thereof is omitted.

In the form of the' invention, shown in Fig.2, the hood, pendant, andbow are the same as those above described. The sleeve 19, whichcorresponds to the sleeve 7, in Fig. 1, is made much shorter to reducethe cost of manufacture, and the winding square has its upper endprovided with a squared portion 20 that engages a similarly shapedportion 21 of the bore of the sleeve. A point or driver 22, thatcorresponds with the point 17 in Fig. 7 engages with a cross slot 23formed in the under face of the set screw 9, and extends from corner tocorner thereof. In this form of the invention the sub-crown is dispensedwith, and the upper end of the set screw is provided with a slot whichis adapted to receive the point of a screw driver to effect the settingof the hands. This latter form will be best adapted for use in therailway service as it will positively preclude any accidental setting ofthe hands.

As shown in Fig. l, the winding square may be made in two parts, theportion 18 that extends through the set screw being provided with a head24: which is adapted to be countersunk into the upper face of the setscrew above the cross slots to any such distance as will prevent thepoint 22 from contacting with it.

In the construction shown in Fig. 3 the pendant is shown as providedinternally with threads 25 to receive pendant nuts 26, 27 and 28. Thenut 26 is first screwed to place, then the sleeve 7 is positioned, andin this form of the invention the sleeve is shown provided intermediateof its ends with a flange 29 that can bear upon the nut 26. The nut 27is then positioned to bear against the flange 29, then the packing 30 isplaced upon the nut 27 and finally the nut 28 is positioned. In additionto these features, the hollow sleeve terminates short of the upper endof the crown in order that a sub-nut 31 may be screwed into the crownandbear upon the sleeve. By this arrangement it will be possible toremove the winding square without first removing the crown, which wouldrequire the movement of a watch to be taken from a watch case. This canbe avoided by employing sub-nut 31 which limits the end motion of theset screw 9 as effectively as though this member were made integral withthe crown. Of course, the other forms described may also be providedwith a sub-nut.

In setting the watch, it is necessary to steady the crown 4 with onehand and with the other loosen the sub-crown 11, after depressing thewinding square, and unscrew the sub-crown to its limit, after which thecrown may be turned to set the watch. The crown is again steadied, thewinding square depressed and the sub-crown reseated until it bearsagainst the crown. Should the point 17 or 22 fail to engage with one ofthe cross slots it will only be necessary to rotate the sub-crown tocause the parts to engage. l

l/Vhen the improvements are employed in. connection with hunting casewatches, there will be sufficient end shake permitted of the sleeve 7 tooperate the case spring, and generally it will be preferred to use theshort sleeve form of the invention, as shown in Fig. 2, with such cases.As usual, the winding square will be provided with a collar or sleeve 32to engage with the case spring, as shown in Fig. 4.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that while theimprovements herein described are simple in character, they will bethoroughly efficient for the purposes designed, and may be applied to anordinary stem-winding watch without requiring any change in itsstructural arrangement.

Having described the invention what is claimed is 1. The combinationwith a pendant, of a sleeve arranged therein, a set screw carried by theupper end of the sleeve and provided on its inner end with a seat, awinding square having a reduced terminal to engage the seat, and meansfor moving the terminal into engagement with the seat.

2. The combination with a pendant of a sleeve mounted therein, a crownconnected with the sleeve to rotate the same, a set screw carried by thesleeve and provided in its inner end with a seat, a winding squarehaving a reduced terminal to engage the seat, and an extensionconstituting a push rod, carried by the winding square and projectingbeyond the crown.

3. The combination with a pendant, of a sleeve to rotate the same, a setscrew carried by the sleeve and having a threaded extension projectingbeyond the crown and provided in its inner end with a seat, a windingsquare having a reduced portion to engage the seat, and an extensionconstituting a push rod projecting through the set screw and beyond theouter end of the same, and a sub-crown threaded on the threaded end ofthe set screw.

4. The combination with a pendant, of a sleeve mounted therein, a crownthreaded on the sleeve, a crown carried by the pendant and coacting withthe flange on the sleeve to limit the outward movement of the latterrelatively to the pendant, a set screw threaded into the upper end ofthe sleeve and provided in its inner end with a seat, and a windingsquare having a reduced portion to engage the seat and an extension,constituting a push rod projecting through the set screw and beyond itsupper end.

, In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have heretoaffixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

MICHAEL SPORLEDER. ll itnesses GEO. W. Mortars, S. D. WERIOK.

